Tiling.



so constructed aud ar FIC;

)HARLES EDWARD HYliE, 0F GOSHEN, INDIANA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TD WESTERN RUBBER COMPANY, 0F GOSHEN, INDIANA.

diremo.

Application filed April 17,

To all whom 'it may concern: Be it known that I, CHARLES EDWARD' ljlrnu, a citizen of the United States, residing at (lloshen, in the county of Elkhart and State of Indiana, have invented new and useful Improvements in T iling, of which the followingA is a specification. b v

My invention pertains to tiling and more particularly to tilingcomprising tiles of rubber or other elastic material, and contem plates the provision in combination with elastic tiles, of rigid means for connecting adjoining tiles; the said rigid means being anged, relative to the tiles, that the tiles are firmly held close together in such-nuinucr that4 the liability of the tiles breaking' away from the coi'lnec'ting means is reduced to a minimum.

The invention also contemplates the provisionriu con'ibination with elastic tiles, of connecting means which. when ar angedin the upper surfaces of-tiles laid on a floor, are calculated to improve the wearing qualities of the tile and at the same time enhance the beauty of the tiling as a whole.

().tlu, advantageous features of the inven tion will be fully understood vfrom the t'ollowing description and claim when the same are read in connection with the drawings, accompanying and forming part of this specification, in which: v

Figure .l is a view showing tiles connected together in accordance with lmy invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged section taken in 4the plancindicated b v the line 2 2 of Fig. l and illustrating the. arrangement ot one ot' the rigid and open'connecting devices relative to the adjoining portions of two tiles. Fig. il is a view of 011e of the said connecting devices removed. A

Similar letters designate corresponding parts in all of the views ot' the drawings, referring to which:

, A. A are tiles, of rubbery or other elastic material, such as are designed more part-icio larly for floor tiles, and B B are rigid and open.tile-connecting devices, of metal or any other material consonant with the purpose ot'r said devices. The tiles A may be ot' hex agonal or other suitable form in outline, and they are peculiar in that each is provided in one of its sidas"\\'ith grooves C, preferably of semi-circular Iform, the ends of which grooves are arrangedat the edge of the tile, whereby it will be 'manifest that the outer Walls of' Specification' of Letters Patent.

Ratentecl Dec. 1, 1,908. 1908. Serial No. 427,595.

the grooves areformed by tile ortions .D which also/form portions ofthe e ges of the tile. The connecting devices B are preterably ot' circular form, and are made such size that they are adapted to be crowded into'tlie grooves C of the tiles, and when so crowded are adapted to rest Vflush with the surfaces of the tiles and be securely held algains, casual displacement by the elasticity l icreo lt will be gathered from the foregoing that the ringdike connecting devicesB are adapted to be expeditiously and easily placed in the meeting grooves vC of adjoining tiles to connect the s aid tiles together, and that when -so placed the said connecting devices are adapted to firmly retain the, tiles in place and assure close 4joints between the saine. It. will also be gathered that because -oi the ring-like connecting devices` being' provided with openings slightly smaller than the tile portions l), the connecting devices serve when forced over the said portions D oi adjoining tiles, to operate after the manner of a cam and draw the tiles together and compress the tile portions within the con.- necting devices and in that way assure a perfectly tight joint such as will preclude the deposit ot' dirt tiles. Moreover it will be noted that-the the inner sides or the outer sides ofthe tiles, and thatwhcn used in the outer or upper sides ol' lloor tiles, the connecting devices ot' metal or other strong-imiterial are calculated to contribute materially to the lastin r qualityfof the tiles, and are also calculate when ot' a color in contrast to that of the tiles, to enhance the beauty of the tile floor as a whole.`

By virtue ot' the portions D ol adjoining tiles being arranged in and eiitirely'sillrounded by open or ring-like connecting' devices, it will be manifest that a-considerable portion ol each tile is engaged by the connecting device.- which contributes materially to the strength and durability ot' the connection` and at the same time an elastic surface or body is disposed inside the connecting device as well as outside the same, and in this way the rigid or non-elastic connecting device is prevented from materially .detracting from the elastic or cushioning quality of the floor of tiles.

and the like between the' When my novel connecting devices are arlilo connecting devices l may be used in either l claim en d desire to secure by Letters-Patent,

of but a minimum amount of effort.

ranged in the inner or under sides of elastic tiles, it will be noted that the tiles are drawn so closely together that there is Vpractically no 'liability of foreign substance finding its way between the opposed edges of tiles, and hence the door formed by the tiles may be cleaned and kept clean with the expenditure The construction `herein illustrated and described constitutes the best practieahem-` bodiment of my vinvention known to me, but it is obvious that in the future practice of 'the invention such changes in form may be mede as fairly fall within the scope of my invention us defined in the claim appended.

Having described my invention, what I .A plurality of tiles of elastic quality, ar-

ranged to forni a plane surface land provided in said surface with closed grooves overlappingr the joints between the said tiles, combined with open, rigid, connecting devices, of the same form as the grooves, having openings slightly smaller than the edge portions of the tiles within the grooves' thereof, and seated in the said grooves, with their upper sides iush with the said surface, whereby they are retained in position by the elasticity of the tiles, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES EDWARD HYKE.

Nitnessesz B. I". DEAHL, G. B. SLATE. 

